Happy vibes for Kiwi party

Kalgoorlie-Boulder Kiwis partied in their “blue-collar paradise” yesterday to mark New Zealand’s national day.

Kalgoorlie Country Club was packed to the brim as the relaxed vibes of a New Zealand summer were heard during annual Waitangi Day celebrations on a warm 35C day.

Waitangi Day is every February 6 and commemorates the 1840 signing of the Treaty of Waitangi between the British Crown and Maori chiefs at Waitangi in New Zealand’s far north.

Organiser of the Kalgoorlie-Boulder celebrations, Shaun Magner, said the day’s spirit of celebrating the union of two peoples started on Saturday night with the marriage of an Aboriginal elder to a Maori woman.

“It was a lovely occasion ... those good feelings have spilled over into today,” he said.

A flag ceremony yesterday morning saw three flags raised — the New Zealand flag, the Tino Rangatiratanga (Maori sover-eignty) flag, and the Ko Huiarau flag, which represents the Confederation of United Tribes, who issued a declaration of independence in 1835.

Mr Magner said New Zealanders were attracted to WA because it was a “blue-collar paradise” where they could earn a sense of pride from working hard.

“We fit into the landscape,” he said.

Despite Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s distance from New Zealand, Mr Magner said links with home remained strong.

“We are still very much in touch with our people at home ... and they send us their regards from afar for today,” he said.